Before Dawn Cruel Lessons of the Night
by ColorGuardSweetHeartHottieFury
Summary: Pushed away by his father, Dracula's son and his best friend vowed never to return. Years later, they found two special someones, who would change all that and pull the wool out from under their noses. However could Dracula except two strange humans with dead end records? What is it they are hidding? Why had they clearly been running? Fear alone, the nightmares under the surface.


_**Before Dawn Cruel Lessons of the Night, Cinders in the Rain**_

 _Hey everyone I'm back. Sorry for the MIA this summer, I really wanted to update stories.  
Anyways I'm not going to talk much as I usually do.  
This story will be rated T for now, but in the future I am upping the rating to M for future chapters. There will be explicit details to some things that may make little ones cringe in later chapters. So please if your a kid but get hooked on this story. I will give you fare warning ahead of time when these chapters should be posted before hand and ask that you skip to the next chapter when I do post them._

 _Also as always IF Your Interested, for Every Story I hold an AMAZING Opportunity for Artists._ _I'll hold a contest each chapter for art work if your interested. If your interested contact me. (More info about the contest last paragraph in final authors note at the bottom of the chapter)_

Pushed away by his father, Dracula's son and his best friend vowed never to return. Years later, they found two special someones, who would change all that and pull the whool out from under their noses. However could Dracula except too strange humans with dead end records? What is it they are hidding? Why had they clearly been running? Only the secrets the four shared conspiciously was not even half to what the hotel attendants could have ever come to expect. There are few things to truly fear in this world, and there are few who know what is the real thing to fear. Monsters that go bump in the night are only imaginary, or are they? There is more to fear than the dark, more to fear that lies within. The only thing we have to fear is what lies beneath the surface. It might be more horrific than you can imagine. Fear alone the nightmares under the surface of all that's dark in the evernight.

 _Longer summary:  
_

 _Fillip and his father never saw eye to eye, and rather fang to fang. One day Dracula pushed it to far, forever cindering their bond for all time. His father gravely pushed him away. Friends of Dracula and his dearly departed wife often gaped in amazement that Fillip hadn't yet had enough of his ill listening father and judgmental ways. That is till one day Dracula took it over the edge.  
That was the day he had no choice but to leave all he knew behind vowing on his mothers grave never to return. Which for a count and a Dracula descendant is something that can't be undone.  
_ _However as fate would have it, one must never say the words 'never', even for a Dracula. Inevitably fate and time would intervene and have their game. They are tricky little things such as fate and time, they will learn to bite you in the butt and spit you out hard on the solid ice floor for what you naively swear to be.  
In an instant everything he despised was gone, in an instant he wanted to share his world with someone else. His hatred for his father and the palace he was trapped with his baby sister for so long, all that anger melted away the moment he looked across the bar to a lone woman as harmed by the trampled earth as his own soul. A most unusual equal. Never would he expect that this rough opinionated feministic human would suddenly that night become his "_Zing _."  
Now Fillip is in for the ride of his life, as he navigates his new hold on romance, his desires to exists as she knows him and the halting shock he will put his family and friends within the hotel in, when they hear the news he's about to share. There is more than the four adults are letting on. But there is far more to fear than the sight of humans becoming a 'Zing." _There are few things to truly fear in this world, and there are few who know what is the real thing to fear. Monsters that go bump in the night are only imaginary, or are they? There is more to fear than the dark, more to fear that lies within. The only thing we have to fear is what lies beneath the surface. It might be more horrific than you can imagine.

 _Oh I don't own Hotel Transylvania, if I did I'd voice a character in it just cause I could. I also don't own Emily Dickinson's Poem Because I Could Not Stop for Death and the Subtle reference I make to her poem I Heard a Fly Buzz- when I died, Both are excellent poems to study. And if you haven't already heard or read them I suggest you do, and if you've never heard of Emily Dickinson research her and read her poems their amazing (she was a female poet when being a literary women and a female writer were widely not popular. Sadly she lived a sad life. But her poems though mostly depressing are really incredible and say something about humanity in itself. (Yeah that's looking deep into it, but I've had to study her throughout my life and as a feminist of sorts I really enjoy what she did for women kind and the wonderful words she produced. I never forgot these two poems I mention. And always looks for ways to use them in things somehow cause there chilling but so good.) I don't take any liberties for the references I make in this chapter. Those are owned by other people. And I don't take profit for using them  
I do own the unnamed characters in this chapter. As well as the two men stated but again unnamed who come in the next chapter._

 _Anyways I hope that got you excited. Please enjoy!_

 _0000_

 _ **Chapter 1: A Thought of Life in Death**_

 _Because I could not stop for Death-_

 _He kindly stopped for me-_

 _The Carriage held but just Ourselves-_

 _And Immortality._

 _~Emily Dickinson~_

Never would I have thought my life would turn like this, little did we think that this would end together.

The words I learned from Emily Dickinson, no more than ninth grade in junior high, the words of _Because I Could Not Stop for Death_ and _I Heard a Fly Buzz- when I died_ , kept twirling in my mind. However, no matter how troubling, we knew the inescapable had come. We were to face death.

Was it really that long ago that I met one of my best friends in ballet class, the new neighbor, or I suppose I was that new neighbor across from her, a house I had just moved into. Such a friendship that I would never forget, and never could either of us replace through all time.

Regardless of that, now I can find the sting of irony that a simple promise we made that day-one day in ballet class, one which literally we promised all the ways we knew to be friends forever. Since that day, no kidding nothing could tear us apart to this day. Even though time and life had tried, could it be so ironic? Literally we are not split apart to this significant moment, for we are facing the same inescapable fate, we are dying together.

It was time to meet loved ones though currently few that had passed on at the gates above. Even if it seemed so soon for some reason it still seemed far too long we had waited.

We could not escape it, even if we tried. We are the face of death.

We watched each other as if to speak the heart stopping pain we regrettably had to share. Though, as I looked into her strong matriculate face always full of worry, I had this overwhelming strange feeling of warmth like being born again as we speed into the oncoming star-a light as it overcame our every being.

We began to pass the great voids of time, to which no account of time felt it existed any longer or ever could, when I felt a hint of agony roaring like a lone wolf to the moon. Something within me figuratively was dying inside, something that attaches forever with the soul like a hole upon the heart.

"It's ironic isn't it?" She huffed; startling me from the void we continued to travel yet to hear the heavenly voices, but feeling ourselves lead on as if our own souls were singing holy music themselves.

Shaking my head I watched her curiously, she always baffled me I knew she had to feel what I had too. But she was such a puzzle sometimes, things could be the most horrible news ever given and she suddenly would shrug it off, smile and find something distracting for everyone in the room. I guess that's a gift that comes from being a cancer survivor as a child.

Smirking ahead, I knew she was watching me, waiting for my reaction as a new light brighter than the last stretched across the void and I felt myself being pulled to it at great speeds not yet known to man. However, I turned, wondering what exactly the other light that we had seen was. Part of me didn't feel the pain the way I had before that light, but part of me was still curious. I wondered if it was an embodiment of what we were feeling and the natural response a body or I guess soul would have to cure oneself to deal with the grief.

Whatever the rules of the unknown are, I knew there had to be something beyond to be experiencing this with my best of friends. And I rather not spoil the one and only passing to the light with my worry over the littlest of things like I had in life. It's what got me in this mess to its own extant anyways.

"Yeah I suppose" I shrugged, looking to my best friend with the most uninterested look I could muster. I guess there was just no breaking of old 'curious George' habits even now.

"I can't get over how ironic all that happened in the last few years was."  
I stopped traveling on the invisible plain we transversed. Which was amazing to know I had control of such a thing. Then again I guess that's how people could do the purgatory thing or how people return only to be ghosts with unfinished business as the theories I kinda enjoyed often went.

Scoffing I placed my hands on my hips to show her just how doubtful I thought that was and how incredibly exasperated that idea made me.

"Ironic! Ha, ironic is not all it was… We knew it was coming, just did not know when. Even before we met them!" I proclaimed as if she had forgotten just why she might have dragged me into one of her "Hippie" conventions. Something I swear I'll find a way to kill her again myself for doing half a million times. Sometimes I wonder why we were even friends. Our ideals are so opposite of the other.

"No…" She corrected holding her finger upon her chin and tapping it, a habit I might have passed on to her. "Well-I mean that we- we spent so much of our lives together, when we ran even from our own police guards…." Pausing yet again, she gave a look that told me she was anywhere but the void we existed in. "You can't tell me you don't know what I'm saying!"  
 _Crap_ I noted to myself, she must have caught my skeptical look at her. I wish I was better at hiding it. I knew I could get a mouthful on her end for using it.  
"You know," swatting her hands a continuous circular motion I continued to gawk. I had absolutely no idea where she was going. And I guess it irritated her more that I couldn't help her out in what she was trying to say. I guess I deserve it, after doing such a thing hundreds of times to her. "That-That we-That we happened to find men who were just as good of friends, yet were all alone running for far too many years."

I smirked fiddling with my hair as we continued to speed along the utter void of space and time. "I suppose." I muttered shrugging my shoulders, more to myself than her pleasure. Though just as soon as it had appeared, had my smile vanished in a cloud of smoke. I had not thought of the boys lately, the man I was leaving behind, and I never had a proper chance to wish him goodbye.

I mean death sucked.

No it really sucked.

It sucked shiting water boarding bad. If only I could say I didn't know what being water boarded felt like. But again that's partly why I'm here in the void traveling briskly to the light. And so far my characteristics aren't as holy as I thought they should be. I guess that's what God means giving us free thought our characteristics good, bad and maybe the ability to swear exists even in death.  
Is it bad that I find pride in that?  
My smile even at that thought was lost again as the pang like a gong vibrated with hunger through my systems.

Puckering my lips sourly like rotten smell worst then laboratory formaldehyde a smell that like a torture itself lasts for days and makes anyone sick of any meat like products. My face had to show it, especially since I began to taste the bitterness. Once I had composed myself, I found with surprise we had stopped again, or rather my best friend had, leaving me to stop in curiosity leaving our journey towards the unknown to wait a moment longer. I mean we literally had eternity to get there, well I hope. The worst it could be is like school where you're horribly late and might get detention. At least I didn't want to think of anything worse than that if we kept heaven waiting, I couldn't bring myself to think the other negative thought that would go through anyone's mind I think if their right in the mind.

She was still, quiet, and deadly white with fear which for her oh so perfectly sun tanned skin was saying a lot, not that I'm jealous or anything. Just knowing her my whole life I knew it was a dire matter when she looked this white, and it's not just because we died either. I only knew what it meant, in her own way she was mourning, mourning a future she could never have. One that neither of us like some sick joke after all we lived could properly own, but felt we freakin' deserved.

I mean we've done far more good than some of those idiots in the world, and they get to have the life of happiness we never get to have. I might sound like a child, but I must say it, _Life Fucking Sucks!_

Seriously you work you ass off to get your dues, get that happy ending the world feds you as children. _Go follow you dreams_ , like some bullshit they try shoving down your throats till you suffocate on it. Only to get a taste of the dreams taste of romance and die before you can see through any of it. _Life is a joke!_

"D-Do you think we were right? Right to leave them. I-I mean…"

Stopping her I placed a hand on her shoulder, even if I despised what we barely were able to have. I wasn't about to let miss sunshine fall down the hate train as I had. "We won't ever know if we were right, only that time did not grant us the leisure to enjoy more cherishable moments with our loves. We weren't given the blessing to wrap up what little moments we could have had to remember them into our journey and the life after. Still no matter what we think or agree we should have been given, the facts remains we couldn't stay. We just couldn't stay-not in that castle as ghosts; we would cause too much pain for them and ourselves. Obviously in the world we only just began to understand was much more expansive then our wildest dreams could have imagined, ghosts are just as haunting and mysterious as the myths of them were before the whole new world within our own opened up to us. Besides nothing was holding back our souls, besides wanting more time-honestly what do we have to legitimately make us turn back and become as we know ghosts or phantoms like Casper and the Ghostly Trio kinda thing. I hate it, honestly I hate it. But it doesn't mean we both have to. Look we are free as the Lord had made us before our births, we are free to choose but we don't want to make fools of ourselves and get stuck in a situation in a crappy situation we can't return from. Look Illy, our troubles are go-" I stopped shuddering as I puckered my lips tasting nasty vile in the back of my throat. It was harder than I thought attempting to be rid myself of such a rotten flavor and thought as I was trying to make myself believe those exact words I was about to say.

"Should-should b-be forever gone. No one's saying we won't see them again. It may seem sooner up there then you think. But yeah, I know what you mean." Man did I hate this. Sighing I looked away, trying to hide the potential tears I could not guarantee weren't about to break from my eyes any moment.

"If only we knew if this-passing on when our vessels could no longer hold us is right. Let's only hope for the best that a love as good as the love we had and the love we've given comes to them again in this life. I might not want to share my guy with another girl, but hey he's still living it's his God given right. He might not do it immediately. _If he doesn't want living hell brought upon him."_ I murmured to myself with my well known devilish smile, though I hoped she didn't see the mischief in me as I stopped for myself.

"But they have the right, as they should. We can only hope them happiness and with that someone who can fully give it to them, who might share in a great loss and understand them on that type of deeper level for it. Look God has reasons our bodies should die-when we die, and souls pass on-when they pass on. Just like you surviving cancer not many years after us meeting each other as children, or me surviving well so many things. Just like that he planned you to live, he planned me to live, and by that he allowed you to be my friend one of my longest lasting friendships yet. And who knows where I'd be without you there so many times, especially to kick my ass straight when I'm being a bitch."  
"Oh, probably dead in a ditch in the middle of nowhere if it wasn't for me." Scoffing with an all knowing huff she carried herself tall as a skyscraper blowing an impossibly annoying blond hair out of her face of mere habit. Giving an expression when it refused to at first defiantly blow back in place, that only could be explained cartoonish as Dopey of Disney's Snow White, might give when he's annoyed. Eventually giving up and settling with brushing it to the side as if the last comical instance had never happened, and she might not just have embarrassed herself in front of whatever heavenly beings were watching us journey on our path to the pearly gates.  
"Exactly!" I nodded letting the moment pass while I made sure to bring us back on topic. "He has reasons for some dying, what some may fear young and others not. Just as he made the universe, just as he chose Ester to carry a great burden in marrying a man who was killing her people the Jews, or God appointed Marry to carry her baby our Lord and Savior, his only begotten son. So do we have a plan in that vast book of his, we passed with nothing left, it can only be because our need on the earth has ended and our new lives with him in heaven are to begin. No matter our fears or doubts, that's what I have to believe, what I must. Because what else is there? If we shouldn't have died, what else do we have than to believe he had a reason for this… all of this!" Clenching my other fist, I tried not to show the anger boiling inside as I did my best to sound confident and reassuring as I had in my sack of blood and bones. But I'm not quite sure how well I was holding it up. This sucked like crap, and there's no other way to put it. Freakin' Smalls, after all I did both of us were dying, and neither of us could have a peaceful life with our loves or even begin to fucking feel peaceful before the nightmares found us and did their worst.

I might as well have been angry at God for not letting me be with him, my love, a bit longer. That is if I didn't know any better. I'm not about to condemn myself before the final judgment now. It doesn't help that I feel I wasted my time away, wasted all my time, and all those hours of hope.

Maybe mom was always right; I had no sense of time. Funny, I come to accept this while in the void where time can't exist. I have to think she named me wrong; my name should just be Irony, that's what my life seems to be a slew of that lately-well since ever. I mean she had a point in making this known since I was young, now that I think of it figuratively I really didn't take note of time, but who can when truly in-love with the one, and I mean 'the one.' Like my right rib, ok technically Eve came from Adams right rib, but that's what it felt like. It felt like I was his right rib and he was mine, even if it makes literally no sense love doesn't have to make sense when you know it's right.

Great he really did a number on me; I was starting to sound like a bad Beatles song or something.

There has to be something with moms wonderful and I mean dislikable observation skill I obviously inherited. I mean I wasted the time I had with him, used him as my initial escape from a bad TV Land stuck Pleasantville like town in literally no-man's land. Then I pretty much let acceptance of a new world go by me without worry, forgetting there was plenty of worry to be had, forgetting the night that awaited me like a predator awaits it's dinner. Literally I let it slip by; being the one place I swore I never would let myself be in sweat la-la land. Maybe I'm playing down what I faced with him, but knowing it all blurs together there's no possible explanation. I wasted my no good fucking life away, spoiled it like month old milk.

Then again, I was raised on the basic rule never dwell on the past and never let it rule you. I may regret it but it already had, hadn't it? I mean that's why I'm dead. It's why we hid wasn't it the past, our mistakes, living in constant fear that did us in? I mean it was that fear, that fear alone that soon made its mark on us like a drunk night tattoo that would forever be a mistake on the skin. It was our fear that made us like Scooby Do and Shaggy, constantly looking over our shoulders was because of our fear, because of 'Him.' Yes it's because of 'Him,' the infamous Wall Street crook so to speak of our past the cheater of life itself.

If I wasted any of my time, logically it's 'His' fault. I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for 'Him,' we wouldn't have our nightmare and constant shadow searching in the night holding us by a leash. If only we hadn't stopped running, maybe we would still be alive. Not living, but alive and able to leisure in the moments of life eventually.

So at this moment for both our sakes I won't let myself be ruled by it, I had to grow up. I'm dead aren't I? It's never too late to have a moment of geniusness after all. God knows how I have learned never to dwell on the past again and again. Maybe I should finally learn to live by this lesson.

It doesn't change the fact our lives were doomed from the moment we met that night at the bar, and that's just fact. We sealed our fates by accepting their invitation to get out of nowheresville all too quickly and enthusiastically. Not to mention that place wasn't even our home, just our hideout. There was need for a change in our routine anyways our hiding wasn't helping, seeing as everywhere we went we were soon found or followed by our own nightmares. We took the first easy way out that came and boy did we enjoy it while that distraction lasted. Who would have expected us, two feminists of wounded souls too fall in love soon after?

I knew I didn't. I thought I was only enjoying the company that night and two years later _pft_ I'm already sleeping with him regularly. Talk about irony catching your tongue and biting you in the butt like a mailman and guard dog, the dog always wins. Ha, don't make me laugh!

We remember how it began, how couldn't we? It happened to us the same day, about the same time, and like quick sand we were stuck, only there to enjoy the ride. Now that we're stuck in the void of ever passing time, on a journey to the unknown the moment that many people fear, I knew that roller coaster was truly the ride worth living even when I was scammed out of my money's worth for the ride it could have been. The hype train could not even match what our rides had been. If I only had one ride I could choose to count as my life, count as the only thing to exist of my life and once it's done be my end it would be that ride, that roller coaster. More than anything I had faced, I had never lived till I had fallen in love and grew as a person with the man I loved. I would cherish the bad, the arguments and pain we caused each other, and fall in love all over again with the good if I could. If there was anything I could ask of heaven, it would be to let me watch on constant rerun my life with him from start to finish. And call it my masterpiece, my favorite movie of all times.

Smiling I nudged my silly Illy as she penanced looking as far and vast as the expanse we roamed. I must have knocked her back a couple of paces, because when she rebuttaled with an even stronger shove I stumbled even farther away nearly on my ass. She had always carried stronger muscles on her since I can remember. One of those Swedish decent muscular types, you know. Sometimes I wish my Nordic traits were more prominent like the Swede was in her. Laughing, I shoved her only lightly this time as I tried not to make a competition out of shoving each other, as often became the case. "Common, heavens calling. Don't want to keep em' waiting long. Even if they might deserve it."

Nodding she nudged me lightly back as she scoffed smoothly shaking her bangs back, as she face palmed to help compress her laughter. If only she accepted such a tactic never worked for her and only worsened the stretch and volume of its laughter then such a gesture usually should, thusly canceling out the need for the gesture of shame and disbelief.

"Yeah sure! But knowing you, with or without me you'd keep them waiting. Just because you're always late, regardless of the matter you're always late."

Nudging my rib, I was quick to rebuke and do the same to her as the void was filled with girlish laughter and sounds like children. "Well maybe that's a good thing. It must mean I'm late at death."  
"Must be, you sure you were alive all these years."  
"Well if not, you finally fulfilled your threat to kill me and bury me-what is it now to china and back. And I managed to reincarnate myself as a phantom and made it my soul purpose to make your life a living hell and haunt you till you die. Maybe bring your end myself."  
"Well doesn't that explain a lot!"  
"Maybe it does." I laughed holding my arm around her shoulder to keep myself stable, though in the void I'm not so sure the gesture is necessary. Out of humanly habit, I'd say it was more than needed, like a hug it was a caring moment between friends.

In that moment, I didn't feel it. My hate and fear were no more, like dust in the wind they vanished and only joy existed helping us on our journey forward.

If it was possible, and being dead it very well could be. If our hearts were capable of it, they would have glowed like the lights at Christmas. This was the moment, a moment we knew traveling forward that like a motivation in our hearts we knew this was the an adventure we were journeying towards, an adventure more glorious than any gambling endeavor ever had been in life.

This was even greater then ever meeting him, the one I'm meant to love.

But oh, how wonderful and unusual was the moment our lives intersected. If I had known just what that day would hold, and what my life would be from that moment on. I would have discounted such absurd claims and jeered at such an outlandish thought. If only I had known the day it happened just what life would bring.

However now, as I transverse into the light I feel fulfilled and complete roaming on the memory of that very day. I might even ask myself _'How could I forget how it all began? The very moment that would bring us to know we are not alone in this world of ours'._ Thanks to our lives crossing we were able to know more than even some scholars could know about our world and those within it. In that moment the answers of the world were unveiled, and we were brought into an obscured world within our own, where fairytales and the like existed hand in hand in secret. A secret like people in a masquerade, holding up the masks for centuries from our kind, the mortal world who long since had debunked the theory of tails old as time.

Well till recently that is.

Who would suspect us, two women who captured the hearts of two men would be behind a chain reaction that would change two worlds, our world for the better, forever. A chain reaction we only began to taste, to feel and dip our feet in. A chain reaction we did not know we had our feet in, until the moment we had gone.

For what were we but simple humans, until that day? That fresh autumn's eve four long years ago, one Octobers day.

* * *

 _Well that's all. As for year those of you wondering when I'll update next. I'll try for most of my Halloween themed stories to update sometime near Halloween but I can't make promises. I would update sooner and Reviews do help. But I've got a lot on my plate lately and I'm not going to make to many promises at the moment._  
 _If you want to help though. I do ask that my family and I could really use some prayers, a lot is going on both in my immediate family and larger family. I would really appreciate prayers if you could at the moment. I don't want to list what's going on, there is a lot. It's also really personal. I just ask for prayers for my family and I, if it doesn't trouble you._

Anyways, _Sorry for the MIA this summer, I really wanted to update stories. I had hopes and plans to update a lot during this summer and the reason I got through this was because I had plans to update this before the Sequel came out. However, the reasons I got through posting one story before the summer was I had forced myself to focus on posting it on time for once, and again I did this with this story. TO be honest updating and posting lately has been a struggle, back before the summer my family suffered a tragic loss that hit home for me. It has been a inward battle writing and making art, I didn't get through half of all I wanted to get through this year/summer and this last year was a full of loss after loss. Till the one that hit to close to home, my mind still hasn't fully felt the pain of it, but it shows in my lack of inspiration. Don't get me wrong I've been working on stories and writing new ones I'll hope to post eventually, soon if at all possible. However, the loss affected me in a great many ways. I barely made any art, I don't even think I've worked on anything since May to be honest. Though I worked on stories this summer I had several days if not weeks even in-between working on stuff where I couldn't bring myself to write,, to touch up or even think about it. It's a struggle when the mortality of life really gets to you. It was a deeper struggle because the loss I faced was a person I write often about, someone whose often close to an extant with my characters because of what we were growing up. It's hard touching on those stories, sometimes more than you know. I managed to pull through and bring you this before the sequel a story I meant to get out over three years ago because like my Inside Out story, I was committed in getting this out there as soon as I could._

 _I hope you all forgive me if I'm not updating in a progressive manor. My life has been hard recently, and even more struggles are revealing themselves to me. The only thing I can ask again is prayers and kind words for my family and I, and all we're going through._

 _And if anyone else out there is facing similar pains I'm praying for you too. Cause everyone needs someone to pray for them and for God to be there and shine his light on the troubles of this world banishing the darkness away._

 _(Please don't criticize me for mentioning God or asking for prayer, I respect if you don't believe and am not asking you in any way to do something you don't want to. I'm only asking for kindness, and If I can respect you I ask you can respect me as a believer)_

 _Thank you and I'll see you next update/Chapter._

 _So your probably also thinking it was a bold move starting out with a character death. If you know me I'm one for SUSPENCE and Mystery. But also at the time I wrote this chapter things like Rise of the Guardians came out and other stuff like that, where the stories being told opened with a character death. Honestly I always kinda liked going this route. I like to sometimes step away from the story being told and add in a exciting piece that makes a reader wander how that happened. This was my point.  
As well as wanting to be an introduction. Back when I wrote this story while HT was out in theaters, I had various ideas for the opening chapter. I was tired of making prologues for so many stories, and wanted something that initially would tie together as separate narrations in the first chapter. I remember going through ideas of Fillip growing up, events of his mothers death (a selection that comes later on as it fit the arc of the story in a latter setting just like it did in the movie), Fillip when he and his best bro Kyle 'Sinbad' Logon left their respective homes, ETC. I PROBABLY could go on and on, in which lists I had made of possible opening narrations. Though many were possibilities that were never written (though may make short POV appearances in or outside of this story as a separate thing Like POV selections of Before Dawn or something of the sort) I had a nagging feeling and ideally enjoyed the thought of being in the heads of the girls as they travel through the "Valley of Death," I mean this story encompasses as the initial summary that brought you here states "The Girls Secrets!" Trust me it will keep you guessing and hopefully keep you interested to the big unveil. But that's for another day. I knew I had to introduce my characters at least in some way. And I wanted to be ambiguous on their names. I felt that it would be best that you could picture them as you wish for now in this chapter. Before the initial identities/traits are revealed in the next chapter. Though some are mentioned here just cause I couldn't resist. I did give a hint to a name for one of the girls, kinda obvious spot. But that was just cause as a writer I found the emotional area feeling dull and unconnected without the character using some form of the name. I mean their supposed to be best friends walking the valley of death together you'd think they'd use something as personal as a name when helping each other cross over, right? So I made the decision to form a nickname I hadn't planned and oddly enjoyed enough to change the original nickname; kinda unoriginal to' I wanted something more personal for the girls who were supposed to know each other since like forever and I thought the one I used worked out perfectly.  
Though feel free if you caught the nickname and think their could be a better personnel one, I'm eager to hear what you may come up with. If you think you have a better one for the girl or both I'll tell you privately their names and see if it could still work for them. Otherwise I might just keep what I came up with out of the blue._

 _Also I hope you caught some of my subtle references to other movies and such (ok some not so subtle) This was added on actually yesterday I felt the chapter stood out more when I used things like that since any person who is talking for themselves usually references things from pop culture without even meaning it.  
By the way though it is a reference, bet you it will take a few people before I get someone to tell me what it references. But the use of "Smalls" has significant meaning to me. In high school, one of my favorite teachers Mr. Bernal (I'm name him for any of you lucky readers who (either live in my area, though I think he's gone else where) might have him as a teacher to know he's one of the most amazing teachers out there to ever have.) He would use the phrase "You're killing me Smalls!" (HINT hint WINK wink NUDGE nudge SHOVE shove) Anyways yeah we had a girl in the class whose last name was Smalls, he kinda had a blast using it whenever she said something wrong. But mostly he used it on a few boys you know the class clown type. You could tell he really enjoyed the phrase and through the years I've known a number of people who use the phrase as an expression like him. While writing hint of nostalgia wave came over me and I had to incorporate the phrase in and area I was struggling to find something to really bring the 'umph' of what I was trying to say. And I knew for two friends that would do the trick. So there you go, a subtle nod with deeper meaning for the writer._

 _Anyways I think that's all for now. By the way I think from now on I'm going to switch things up for my stories. If I have something long to say I'm going to leave it to the end and only put the important stuff up top. (Don't worry If your new to my work or more recent work. I'll admit that I don't often indulge/dwell into such a deep story info as I have after the first chapter or two. Just like other authors my Author Notes get shorter and shorter as I go further into my stories, just because theirs less to say in rating terms and such. But if theirs a challenge or something I want to bring up then I might have longer ones.)  
_

 _Even thought I sated this above, I usually restate this fact for those of you that skim through the AN's and might have missed a fantastic opportunity. And I post more details here anyway._

 _Lastly as always. I'll hold a contest each chapter for art work if your interested. Even if I make my own art, I'll hold that as connected to this story on DA if anyone's ever willing to take me up on the contest offer to make art for whatever chapters you like and I'll hold it for the main cover here till the next story and on da for that stories specific chapter it's related to. Like I said this is all for fun, I unfortunately would not be able to pay you if you one per week the prize is having your picture used for that chapter and on to be used as it's cover till the next picture. If no one takes me up I'll use my own art, but it's a great way to get yourself out there if your interested I have no limits on what you can draw or make for the art._

 _Anyways,_

 _Tootles, I'll talk again soon. :)_


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